Arrested Hong Kong cardinal a fiery critic of Beijing

HONG KONG (AP) — The 90-year-old retired Hong Kong archbishop who was arrested by Hong Kong police on national security charges has long been a fiery critic of Beijing and the Vatican’s efforts to reach a working arrangement with the ruling Communists. Cardinal Joseph Zen left a police station on bail on Wednesday night following his arrest alongside other trustees of the 612 Humanitarian Support Fund. The group provided assistance to people arrested during 2019 anti-government protests. Zen’s activism dates back decades, during which he built up deep distrust of the Chinese authorities. In 2018, the retired Hong Kong archbishop warned that a deal between the Vatican and China that cedes too much power to Beijing would place the country’s Catholic followers in a big “birdcage.”